Where Could San Francisco 49ers Trade Alex Boone?

Dec 15, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh smiles with guard Alex Boone (75) after they scored a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. San Francisco 49ers defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 33-14. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Alex Boone is not budging on his contract holdout from the San Francisco 49ers.  Could this mean a trade, and if so where?

Indianapolis Colts

The offensive line situation for the Indianapolis Colts looks no less perilous than it did at the end of last season.  It became especially true after guard Donald Thomas tore his quad muscle, ending his season.  If that weren’t bad enough, center Khaled Holmes went down with an ankle injury as well.  The protection for Andrew Luck is thinning fast.  Adding a proven veteran like Boone would be a huge shot in the arm for an offense trying to reach a new ceiling.

New England Patriots

Interior blocking has also become a problem for the New England Patriots.  Not only are they struggling at times to protect Tom Brady, which is of course unacceptable, they’ve also shown limited ability to generate movement in the run game.  Their 63 total rushing yards in the preseason opener against Washington was clear evidence of the problem.  Part of it may be age as both Logan Mankins and Dan Connolly are over the age of 30.  Boone is just 27 and has excelled in an offense built to run the football.

Miami Dolphins

Their signing of veteran Daryn Colledge was a clear indication that the Miami Dolphins haven’t solved all their offensive line issues from last season when they gave up 58 sacks.  If Ryan Tannehill is going to reach his potential as a quarterback that has to get better.  Thus far he has looked good, but the Dolphins running game as not.  Adding a bigger, stronger guard like Boone could be that missing piece they’ve been looking for to unlock the explosive potential of Lamar Miller and the ground attack.

Buffalo Bills

Speculation has surfaced that the Buffalo Bills make the most sense of any 49ers trade partner because they have something that might interest San Francisco.  Since he becomes a free agent after 2015, running back C.J. Spiller has seen trade rumors spike around him for the past couple months.  With Frank Gore aging and Kendall Hunter out for the season, the run-oriented 49ers might love adding another talented body to their backfield.  In return the Bills can improved the interior blocking of an offensive line that gave up 49 sacks in 2013.